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Entries from July 2012

July 31, 2012

Although we didn't reach this past week's adoption goal, we are so excited that 73 pets – 21 dogs and 52 cats – adopted last week will be spending their lives in permanent, loving homes. Our ambitious goal for the coming week is to find homes for 101 pets.

We have so many wonderful animals awaiting adoption at the Robins-Starr Humane Center. Some pets have been waiting for only a short time, while for others, a long time has passed. We truly believe there is a home out there for each and every one of these special animals, so we encourage you to stop by and let our adoption counselors introduce you to a new friend today. Not only will it make a difference in your life, but it will make a difference in theirs as well. Additionally, for each pet placed in a home through adoption, our admissions team transfers homeless dogs and cats to our facility from government pounds and shelters throughout the Metro Richmond area. So be a hero for an animal today!

Off-site adoptions:

This Saturday, August 4,our Tail Wag'N will be at the Richmond BMW and Crown Mini at 8710 West Broad Street, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Stop by and meet a new feline or canine friend! For every vehicle purchased this month from Richmond BMW, Crown Mini or Crown Acura, the dealerships will make a donation to support pets in our care.

On Sunday, August 5th, we'll be bringing our furry friends to the Watermelon Festival. Our Tail Wag'N will be there from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m, so stop by! We hope to see you there!

Adoption Special:

Our "Two’s Company” adoption special has been so popular that we are extending it from July to August. During the entire month of August, any two felines can be adopted for one $95 adoption fee! Isn't everything better in pairs?

Lora Robins Gift Shop Special – Just for adopters!

For a limited time, all new adopters will receive a coupon to use in our retail shop. Adopters who spend $25 or more will receive a free bag of Companion Brand dog or cat food (the same food their pet has been fed during his stay here at our humane center), or they'll get $10 off a purchase of $50 or more. The Lora Robins Gift Shop has knowledgeable staff and is well stocked with fabulous pet products at prices comparable to the big box stores. The best thing about your purchase is that proceeds benefit homeless pets still awaiting adoption.

To read the biographies of our regular bloggers, please click here. Before posting a comment, please review our comment guidelines. Please note that our comment policy requires a first and last name to be used as your screen name.

July 28, 2012

The Richmond SPCA’s 2011-2012 Mascot, Lottie Dula, is on the move to pet-friendly places around Richmond. We’ve outfitted her with a GoPro video camera so you can see her perspective on the world.

This week Lottie is visiting The Jefferson Hotel. The luxury Richmond hotel is the home of much anticipated Fur Ball, where Lottie won the honor of becoming our mascot in last year's spirited live auction.

All areas of the famed Jefferson Hotel are pet-friendly – with the exceptions of the restaurants, private meeting rooms, health club and swimming pool. Throughout her tour, the staff greeted Lottie with genuine warmth and enthusiasm for her visit. The staff of Blooms at the Jefferson, who were working on preparations for a wedding, took time to stop and offer Lottie a rose to sniff. Many recognized her as the Richmond SPCA's Mascot, and one family of guests were quite curious about her "doggie cam." We hope they'll continue to follow her travels!

Like all four-legged guests checking in with their families, Lottie was welcomed by name and given a bag of gourmet dog treats before being shown to her room. Mark Paterson, the hotel's director of sales, showed her to the Presidential Suite, which was recently featured on Richmond.com's list of "Five Fantastic Richmond Honeymoon Suites."

Lottie on the marble balcony of the Presidential Suite, overlooking Franklin Street, with The Jefferson Hotel's Director of Sales Mark Paterson.

Video edited by Eric Steigleder. To read the biographies of our regular bloggers, please click here. Before posting a comment, please review our comment guidelines. Please note that our comment policy requires a first and last name to be used as your screen name.

July 25, 2012

Penelope has quite the collection of bandannas. Here she is wearing her spring/summer ladybug bandanna.

Editor's note: For the 14 months Penelope was in the care of the Richmond SPCA, she was a favorite with many staff and volunteers. She also became a favorite here on our blog, where the "Angel Pet Spotlight" post about her condition, mega colon, was viewed more than 8,000 times. Penelope's foster home became a permanent, adoptive home on February 16, 2012, and we're delighted to share this update from her adopter, Lauren, along with photos taken by her husband, Martin.

Since Penelope left the Richmond SPCA in mid-February, she has been a very busy girl. She has traveled to two flyball tournaments to cheer her favorite flyball team, Take Shelter, to victory. She has also battled the rapids of the Ellijay River in North Georgia, and the 90 steps it took to get down to the river from our cabin! Penelope has logged over 1,500 miles so far.

When Penelope isn’t traveling, she can be found in Bellevue visiting her favorite shop, Paws on MacArthur, where is groomed and spoiled by the owner and staff. She can also be found occasionally at Lowes picking out plants, that she thinks will enhance our home’s curb appeal. At home Penelope refuses to be treated differently just because she is much smaller than her three dog siblings. She will only drink water out of the “big dog” bowl, and is in charge of maintaining polite behaviors inside the house. There is no jumping on the table on her watch....

When Penny wears her cheerleader harness, she gets very serious and lets the competition know that Take Shelter is the best flyball team around.

Shortly after adopting Penelope she did suffer a set-back and needed to be placed back on some of the medications that she had taken before her surgery, but I am happy to report that Penelope is now off the medications, and has even surprised her surgeon with her post-operative progress. We still have to be careful about what foods she eats, but other than that she lives a relatively normal life. Even though Penelope is my first dog with special medical needs, I do have two other dogs with special behavioral needs. Surprisingly, learning to manage Penelope’s medical condition has not been much different than learning how to manage fear-based aggression or leash-reactivity.

Penelope has recently begun her training to develop the skills she will need to play agility. Even though she firmly believes that she is too cute to have to work for food, she has been a good sport, and we hope a novice agility title is in her future.

Penelope has such a great temperament, and is a testament to the resilient nature of dogs. In honor of her past and her personality after we adopted her we gave her the “official name,” Penelope Pickle-Bottom Prissy Pants, and we call her Penny for short.

This photo is of Penelope during our Georgia vacation. She is standing on large rock which is on the river bank.

This is a photo of Penelope conquering the 90 steps it takes from our cabin to the river.

This is what Penelope does after a walk or after being outside when it’s warm.

This is Penelope doing her favorite trick “reach.” As you can see she will sometimes also lift one of her hind-legs off the ground.

This is a photo of Penelope playing in the snow shortly after we adopted her. We initially thought that she wouldn’t like the snow, but she had a blast playing outside in it.

Your gift to the Annual Fund helps us save pets like Penelope and provide them the care needed to place them in loving forever homes.

To read the biographies of our regular bloggers, please click here. Before posting a comment, please review our comment guidelines. Please note that our comment policy requires a first and last name to be used as your screen name.

July 24, 2012

This past week we had a whirlwind of adoptions here at the Richmond SPCA! Once again, we exceeded our weekly goal. We found permanent, loving homes for 96 pets, that's 66 cats and 30 dogs! Our goal for the coming week is an ambitious 91 animals.

If you are considering adding a new pet to your family, we hope you will plan a visit to our Robins-Starr Humane Center. The pets available for adoption are constantly changing, and you will find many new, eager faces of dogs and cats to greet you, along with the friendly, knowledgable adoption team who will help you Meet Your Match. With summer here, what better time than now to find your soul mate in a companion animal!

Off-site adoption:

This Friday, July 27, we will be bringing our feline and canine friends to the “Movies on the Avenue." Our Tail Wag'N will be there from 7:30-9 p.m., so stop by and meet a new friend while enjoying the film Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa. The event will be located at the playing field on the 5800 block of Patterson Avenue (between Maple and Libby). Visit our event calendar for details.

Eight of our fantastic felines are greeting shoppers at two Petco locations in the Richmond area – Short Pump and Staples Mill. To make an adoption appointment at one of the Petco stores, call our adoption desk at 804-521-1307. Recently, three cats – Maizy, Xena and Harry – found loving homes with shoppers at the Staples Mill store!

Adoption Specials:

Two's Company: Throughout July, you can adopt any two cats or kittens for a single adoption fee of $95. We hope you take advantage of this special because two is always better than one!

To read the biographies of our regular bloggers, please click here. Before posting a comment, please review our comment guidelines. Please note that our comment policy requires a first and last name to be used as your screen name.

July 23, 2012

Since opening our Clinic for Compassionate Care on March 5, the response from the community to the new availability of low-cost, full-service veterinary care has been overwhelming. In less than six months of operations, our Clinic has delivered services to 2,000 unique new clients, with a combined total of nearly 4,000 pets.

Our small staff of veterinarians, technicians and assistants are providing high-quality professional care to a population that continually expresses gratitude for services they tell us they had previously been unable to provide to the pets that they love very much.

In recent weeks, as the volume of clinic clients and the resulting appointments have increased dramatically, we have reached the full volume of clients our present resources can adequately accommodate. As a result, we are no longer able to accept new full-service clients into the Clinic for Compassionate Care. This is necessary in order for us to continue to meet the needs of our existing client base. Exceptions will be made for our adopters and those who come to us with veterinary referrals. We will continue to accept as new clients those who have adopted a pet from the Richmond SPCA since March 5, 2012. We will also continue to accept, on a case-by-case basis, referrals from outside private veterinary practices at the discretion of our Director of Veterinary Services Dr. Angela Ivey.

While we very much wish that we could help an unlimited number of guardians and pets in need throughout our community with this crucial service, our resources only go so far, and we are doing as much as we possibly can for as many as we can with the funding, personnel, and physical space that we have. We do anticipate that a time will come when we have the ability to expand our client base again; however, we cannot be certain exactly when that time will arrive or how many additional clients we will be able to help when it does. Please visit us online at richmondspca.org/clinic for updates.

Robin Robertson Starr is the chief executive officer of the Richmond SPCA. To read her biography or that of our other bloggers, please click here. Before posting a comment, please review our comment guidelines. Please note that our comment policy requires a first and last name to be used as your screen name.

July 20, 2012

The Richmond SPCA’s 2011-2012 Mascot, Lottie Dula, is on the move to pet-friendly places around Richmond. We’ve outfitted her with a GoPro video camera so you can see her perspective on the world.

During the summer months, the Richmond SPCA is filled with children who spend a week with us learning about animals. Each week brings a new focus and new kids, filled with compassion for animals and delight in learning more about our companions. Earlier in July, we hosted Dogs with Jobs. Campers were able to meet all kinds of "working" and performance dogs. Guests included a bomb-sniffing dog, an arson dedection dog, therapy dogs, service dogs, agility dogs, trick dogs, obedience dogs, and of course Lottie, the current and hard-working mascot of the Richmond SPCA.

Martha Dula, Lottie's mom, took the opportunity to talk about Lottie's early and probably not-so-happy days in a puppy mill and the collaborative efforts of the Humane Society of the United States and the Richmond SPCA to help find her (and many like her) happily-ever-after homes and in Lottie's case, a second "career." It was a wonderful visit for everyone. Thank you Lottie!!

Video edited by Eric Steigleder. To read the biographies of our regular bloggers, please click here. Before posting a comment, please review our comment guidelines. Please note that our comment policy requires a first and last name to be used as your screen name.

July 17, 2012

There is a tongue-in-cheek statement that I have always found amusing in a sad sort of way that “No good deed goes unpunished.” This statement is often borne out in our world. People doing kind things with the best of intentions are sometimes treated badly as a result and, when this happens, our society loses, both because the person is dissuaded from doing such good deeds again and because it causes others to be disinclined to do good things and risk suffering retribution as a result.

A perfect example of “no good deed goes unpunished” happened to Eileen McAfee and, rather than just take it, Eileen fought back. Thankfully, she was vindicated recently by a Federal District Court jury. The facts have been detailed in several news reports including one in the Times-Dispatch and that recitation of the relevant events can be found here.

I think very highly of Eileen’s dedicated and tireless work for the well-being of animals through many years. I was horrified and totally flabbergasted when I heard of her being arrested in her home and taken in a squad car to the Powhatan facility where she was fingerprinted and charged with the crime of withholding the location of a potentially rabid dog. While I had no doubt that Eileen would never withhold any such information from Powhatan County, I also could not imagine why on earth the county would engage in such outrageously aggressive measures to deal with this sort of matter. Eileen, after the horrible experience of being arrested, was then subjected to months of fear, embarrassment and stress before she was acquitted of the charges, as I knew she would be. She then undertook a lawsuit against Christine Boczar, the head of Animal Control for Powhatan County who was the person responsible for the arrest warrant and charges.

After more information came to light in connection with Eileen’s lawsuit, the reason for the county’s over-the-top, jackboot sort of approach to treating Eileen became clear. Ms. Bozcar was recorded in a conversation with another county employee that made clear that she had Eileen confused with someone else that she referred to as a “kook” and a member of an animal group that Eileen is not actually a member of. Bozcar said that she would “guarantee” that this person would never come back into Powhatan County after being treated this way.

It should come as no surprise that, after a jury heard this, they agreed with Eileen that this constituted malicious prosecution and violated federal law. Eileen will receive back both her attorney’s fees in defending the criminal action and her attorneys’ fees in pursuing the malicious prosecution case. This sort of behavior on the part of a county official should concern and offend all of us. While Eileen was not actually the person that Ms. Bozcar was seeking to teach a lesson to and keep out of the county for the future, no one should be subjected to such treatment – especially when all they were trying to do was to do a good thing for a dog that needed help. Law enforcement officers should not be manipulating the legal process in order to teach lessons to people they do not like for one reason or another. No reasonable person would ever have wanted Eileen to have had to endure this miserable treatment but, thankfully, she was both willing and able to stand up for not only her rights but the rights of others by suing Ms. Boczar.

So, it is my hope that the take away lesson here is not “No good deed goes unpunished.” I hope the lesson to law enforcement officers is that they must treat everyone, even those with whom they do not agree, with fairness and reason. And, for the rest of us, the take away lesson in my view should be that we have a better community and a better society when we have the courage to stand up both for helpless animals and for our own rights under the law. My sincere thanks to Eileen for providing us with a great example of having that courage.

Robin Robertson Starr is the chief executive officer of the Richmond SPCA. To read her biography or that of our other bloggers, please click here. Before posting a comment, please review our comment guidelines. Please note that our comment policy requires a first and last name to be used as your screen name.

July 16, 2012

What a great week it has been! We not only reached, but exceeded last week's goal. We were able to place 82 pets – 66 cats and 16 dogs – into permanent homes. Every adoption makes a difference in the lives of animals, so we hope to see these numbers continue to increase. Our goal for the upcoming week is to place 84 pets.

These terrific adoption numbers are also due in part to our "Two's Company" adoption special. In this past week alone, 36 kittens found homes as pairs, proving it is better with a buddy. With this past week's success, we can't wait to see what the rest of July will bring. For each pet placed in a home through adoption, our admissions team is also hard at work transferring homeless dogs and cats to our facility from government pounds and shelters throughout the Metro Richmond area. When you adopt a pet from the Robins-Starr Humane Center, it's like saving two lives because it gives us space to help another animal in great need. Thanks to this adoption special, we will be saving the lives of many cats and kittens in the Metro Richmond area.

Off-site adoption:

This Friday, July 20, the Tail Wag’N will be at Crossroads Art Center from 6-9 p.m. for the Crossroads Art Center gallery opening. We'll be out front with our feline and canine friends, so stop by to meet a new friend. Then head inside to enjoy an open house and all-media show from some of Richmond's finest artists. Proceeds from the cash bar at this event benefit pets in our care.

We also have seven of our wonderful cats greeting shoppers at two Petco locations in the Richmond area – Short Pump and Staples Mill. Whether you're looking for a "leader of the band" like Virginia, or prefer a "private investigator" like Mattie, don't overlook these fanstastic felines!

Adoption Specials:

Two's Company: Throughout July, you can adopt any two cats or kittens for a single adoption fee of $95. We hope you take advantage of this special because two is always better than one!

To read the biographies of our regular bloggers, please click here. Before posting a comment, please review our comment guidelines. Please note that our comment policy requires a first and last name to be used as your screen name.

July 13, 2012

On Friday, July 13, Judge Yoffy ruled in Susan Mills' case. You may recall that she is the very kind lady who has been doing a wonderful job for many years of caring for a small group of feral cats in her neighborhood. Susan’s care of those cats has been a textbook example of how feral cats should be treated – she has made sure that they all were spayed and neutered and had all of their inoculations and has consistently fed them and gotten them veterinary care when they needed it. Despite her years of dedicated and responsible care, Henrico County suddenly issued her a notice of violation under the zoning ordinance saying that caring for feral cats was not a permitted use in the particular zoning that applies to her house. That notice of violation was appealed to the Board of Zoning Appeals which ruled against Susan for reasons that were not clear. The decision of the Board of Zoning Appeals was then appealed to the Circuit Court and assigned to Judge Yoffy.

Judge Yoffy’s decision on that appeal modified the notice of violation issued to Susan on the grounds that it was impermissibly vague. His decision was both against her in part and for her in part. He ruled against her by determining that caring for feral cats was not “customarily incidental” to the use of her home and that the County could regulate the care of feral cats under the County’s zoning ordinance. However, he also determined that the notice of violation the County had issued against her failed for vagueness because it was not sufficiently specific as to allow a resident of the County to understand what kinds of care for cats are permitted and what are not.

It is important to us to note the very gracious things that Judge Yoffy said in court during his ruling about both the excellent work and professionalism of Susan’s attorneys, Will Shewmake and Jack Robb, and about Susan. He complimented Messrs. Robb and Shewmake on their fine presentation of the legal issues and on the excellence of their legal skills, in fact, saying that he would like for them to be teaching classes to other lawyers. He also said that Susan was to be praised for her courage and determination in standing up for what she believed to be right and her dedication to doing something kind for animals that she cares about deeply. The Judge said that he too cares deeply about animals and that he was impressed with her dedication to their well being.

The Richmond SPCA has backed and supported Susan throughout this long legal ordeal and we do not intend to stop now. This case is crucially important both for the feral cats that need our protection and care and for the rights of property owners to do reasonable things with freedom on their own property. While we care about this case because of its crucial importance to people who are responsibly caring for feral cats all over Henrico, we also believe that there are important issues presented by this case with regard to the property rights of homeowners. Thankfully, Messrs. Shewmake and Robb of the LeClairRyan law firm are willing to undertake an appeal of this case to the Virginia Supreme Court and Susan has indicated that she wants to pursue that appeal. We will be behind her all the way and will do all we can to support her and protect her right to engage in activities on her own property that provide humane care to innocent animals. Susan Mills, Will Shewmake and Jack Robb are all animal welfare heroes in our book and we are proud to be on their team.

Robin Robertson Starr is the chief executive officer of the Richmond SPCA. To read her biography or that of our other bloggers, please click here. Before posting a comment, please review our comment guidelines. Please note that our comment policy requires a first and last name to be used as your screen name.

July 12, 2012

My husband Preston and I lost our beautiful cat Lila to cancer in March of this year. We referred to her as "the best cat in the world" and "perfection on four paws." And she really was. She was beautiful, smart, kind – pure goodness to her core.

She was diagnosed with lymphocytic leukemia in late January. We tried an oral treatment regimen, then injectable chemo. She wasn't getting better. In fact, she was getting worse. We knew we had to do what was best for her. While we would have done anything FOR her – and we had laid out a course of treatment with her oncologist – we had to recognize when the time came to stop doing things TO her. That time came at 1:24 a.m. on Thursday, March 8. She was only 15. She had been so brave. It was our turn to be brave for her.

I have lost animals before – and even people – whose loss has not affected me like this. Lila and I had a connection. A connection I can't really put into words. I will love and miss her until the day I die.

But when you suffer a loss – even a catastrophic loss – you must find a way to re-open your heart. If you don't, you stay trapped in sadness. There's a fine line between mourning and deep sadness. I didn't know where that line was and found myself in a place I didn't want to be. Even people who "get it" don't always understand the depth of those feelings. I knew Lila wouldn't want me to be sad. And I didn't want to be sad anymore either.

Working at the Richmond SPCA, there's never a shortage of wonderful animals needing loving families. For Preston and me, there was never going to be a "right" time to adopt, so Thursday, July 5 was the day. Seventeen weeks after we lost Lila. One hundred and nineteen days to the day. Just before noon, we became "parents" again. Our new girls are Julia and Charlotte. We loved them instantly.

Liz and Preston Bryant cuddle their newest family members, Julia and Charlotte.

Three-month-old sisters, they are all kitten. Preston and I have never had more than one cat and we have no experience with kittens, so this is an adventure for all of us. I am the overprotective "mom" obsessing over safety. Julia and Charlotte spend their time between "all out race around" and "all out sleeping." And Preston provides that much-needed voice of reason. He's a good cat "dad." They enjoy our company and are settling into their new life. As are we. And we're all enjoying this journey very much.

As my two girls lay stretched across my lap the other evening, I had a "Lila moment" and began to cry. Little Julia got up, put her face next to mine, and licked my tears.

At that moment, it became clear. We are a family.

Liz Bryant is the manager of major gifts at the Richmond SPCA. To read the biographies of our regular bloggers, please click here. Before posting a comment, please review our comment guidelines. Please note that our comment policy requires a first and last name to be used as your screen name.